After a night of rest, the Fairy Tail group prepared to embark on their journey home.
The villagers came to see them off. After bidding farewell to the enthusiastic villagers, everyone boarded the pirate ship Erza had commandeered and headed towards Hargeon.
When they arrived at Hargeon, the revived Natsu excitedly ran out and shouted, "Hahaha! This mission was perfectly solved too! I can have a good meal when we get back!"
Lucy stretched, feeling that although this quest had its twists and turns, the outcome was good in the end.
However, before she could fully relax, a cold voice sounded from behind her, instantly freezing the leisurely atmosphere.
"You all seem very happy."
Erza stood there with her arms crossed, her face expressionless.
"Uh..." Natsu's smile froze on his face.
Gray flinched and immediately looked over.
Lucy's heart skipped a beat, a bad premonition rising within her.
"Er... Erza..."
Erza's gaze slowly swept over the three of them.
"Although the outcome of this quest was acceptable, there's no doubt that your unauthorized actions violated Guild rules."
"Gulp!"
Natsu and Gray gulped simultaneously.
"So..." Erza paused, a dangerously curved smile seeming to form at the corner of her lips.
"Punishment is unavoidable."
"Ahhh!" Natsu and Gray let out desperate screams.
"However, considering that you did resolve the incident..." Erza's tone suddenly shifted.
Sparks of hope instantly ignited in their eyes.
"This time, the punishment will be lenient."
"Oh!"
"That's great!"
"We'll use 'that' as the punishment." Erza finally announced.
"..."
"..."
Natsu and Gray, who had been celebrating just a second ago, turned instantly pale the moment they heard the words "that thing."
"Th-that thing?!" Gray's voice was trembling.
"No! Anything but that!"
Natsu clutched his head and curled into a ball, as if he had heard the most terrifying thing in the world.
"What is 'that thing'?"
Lucy looked at their exaggerated reactions, her face full of question marks.
Were these two guys really that bothered?
It's just a punishment, right?
However, no one answered her.
Natsu and Gray just kept shaking their heads, their faces etched with despair.
Happy was also scared, flying into the air, his little wings flapping rapidly.
He cautiously flew to Erza's side and spoke in an almost fawning tone, "Erza... I... I'm just a cat, right?"
"That punishment... it shouldn't have anything to do with me, right?"
Happy said, casting a pleading look at Ryoma, who was watching the show.
Ryoma spread his hands and said vaguely, "Well... I'm not too clear on the Guild's rules."
Happy immediately became anxious upon hearing this. He zipped in front of Ryoma, put his two small paws together, and looked at him piteously.
"Ryoma! If you help me plead my case, I'll let you pet me for a whole day." Happy held up one tiny paw.
Seeing Ryoma unmoved, he gritted his teeth and held up two more.
"No! Three days! I'll let you pet me for three days."
Seeing Happy's determined expression, Ryoma finally couldn't help but laugh. He reached out and pulled the little cat closer, rubbing Happy's fluffy head.
"Heh heh, don't worry. You'll be fine."
Happy, reassured, let out a long sigh of relief and immediately hid behind Ryoma.
Meanwhile, Lucy's curiosity had reached its peak.
She leaned closer to Gray and whispered, "Hey, what exactly is 'that thing'? Why are you two so scared?"
Gray shivered all over, as if remembering some terrible memory, and shook his head frantically. "Don't ask... Please don't ask..."
Lucy then turned to Natsu.
Natsu simply buried his head in his arms, playing dead.
The more they acted this way, the more curious Lucy became, and the more uneasy she felt.
What kind of punishment could scare these two fearless guys so much?
"Just tell me!" Lucy shouted, exasperated.
"Lucy, you're dripping a lot of juice again."
Happy poked his head out from behind Ryoma and pointed at the cold sweat on Lucy's forehead.
"I told you, it's sweat!" Lucy shrieked in frustration.
In this noisy atmosphere, Erza dragged Natsu onto a train and returned to the familiar town of Magnolia.
However, as soon as they got off the train, they sensed something was wrong.
Pedestrians on the street stopped and gathered, whispering among themselves, as they watched them.
Their gazes held sympathy, pity, and a hint of... fear?
"What's going on?" Natsu frowned.
"It feels strange." Lucy mumbled softly.
Erza and Ryoma also noticed the anomaly, their expressions growing serious.
"Let's go back to the Guild first." Erza said in a low voice.
The group quickened their pace, running towards the direction of the Guild.
Then, from a distance, they saw that tragic sight.
"..."
Time seemed to stand still at that moment.
Natsu's confusion froze on his face.
Gray's mouth hung open, unable to speak.
Lucy's eyes were wide and round, and the item she was holding clattered to the ground.
Erza's body trembled slightly, her scarlet hair disheveled in the wind.
The Guild had been pierced through from all directions by countless thick, menacing giant iron rods. Those iron rods had penetrated the roof and broken through the walls, pinning the entire building in place.
The proud signboard at the Guild's entrance was also shattered into several pieces, scattered among the rubble.
It was dilapidated, desolate, and full of humiliation.
"Gui... Guild..." Natsu's voice was incredibly hoarse.
An unspeakable rage began to rise from the depths of everyone's hearts.
Ryoma stood frozen, looking at the scene before him. He knew the plot, knowing that Phantom Lord would invade.
But he never imagined that when this scene truly unfolded before his eyes, it would be so jarring and so... infuriating.
It wasn't just a building, it was home. It was the shared home of all their comrades.
An intensely cold aura suddenly erupted from Ryoma's center.
Boom!
An invisible magical pressure instantly swept across the entire street, and the air temperature plummeted. A thin layer of frost rapidly spread across the ground, starting from Ryoma's feet, emitting soft "crackling" sounds.
The townspeople who had been whispering around them instantly felt a mountain-like pressure bear down on them, even breathing became difficult. They all looked at the young man radiating terrifying aura, their faces pale with fear.
Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Erza were also startled back to their senses by this sudden pressure. They abruptly turned to look at their companion.
At this moment, Ryoma's face no longer held the usual composure and laziness. In his eyes, an icy blue storm seemed to be brewing, and the magic power swirling around him transformed into visible cold air, causing the surrounding space to appear slightly distorted.
It was a pure, undisguised, bone-chilling rage.
...
Meanwhile, in the Fairy Tail Guild's underground storage room, temporarily used as a tavern.
The Guild members were drinking in low spirits, discussing how to deal with Phantom Lord.
Suddenly—
A powerful, suffocating pressure enveloped the entire Guild.
Bang!
A glass fell.
Clang!
The sounds of tables and chairs overturning echoed one after another.
The storage room instantly fell into a dead silence. Everyone stopped their movements, their faces filled with horror as they felt this terrifying magic power.
"Wh-what is this?!"
"Such strong pressure!"
"Is it an enemy?!"
Mirajane's expression changed. She could feel the rage contained within this magic power.
However, after the initial shock, Makarov, who was sitting at the bar, suddenly looked up. His body trembled, and a glint flashed in his eyes.
This aura... this cold yet familiar magic power...
"It's Ryoma!"
Makarov's voice was filled with urgency.
He abruptly jumped off his bar stool and rushed towards the exit to the ground level.
"Master?!"
"Hey! Old man!"
The shouts behind him were completely ignored.
Makarov rushed out of the basement at top speed and arrived at the devastated Guild entrance.
Then he saw the children who had just returned, and Ryoma, standing before the ruins, radiating towering rage and endless chill.